While the government is assuming responsibility for a new series of fiscal-budgetary laws, minimum salaries in Romania are to be raised by 10%, from 3,000 to 3300 RON, equivalent to 660 euros. Over 1.8 million workers working mainly in transport, trade and SMEs are among the beneficiaries of the new measures.
The proposed raise in pay aims to safeguard the income of all employees, while simultaneously boosting employment, buying power, and curbing illegal activities. Other social categories in the low income bracket, such as the disabled and those involved with various independent activities and intellectual property rights, will also benefit from the new measure.
This government will not give up on the priority of raising the minimum salary and we would like to have another raise in 2024, which we are going to discuss with social partners, the head of the Romanian executive Marcel Ciolacu said. The official has insisted that no minimum wages will decrease in Romania upon implementation of the new fiscal-budgetary law package for which the government has assumed responsibility before parliament. The executive decided to scrap the proposal on raising the minimum salary in the construction sector because these salaries would have decreased due to the introduction of the health insurance contributions. The workers in constructions, agriculture and food sector will receive their salaries identical, since they don't have to pay health benefits.
The government initially proposed to raise the minimum gross wages of constructions from 4,000 to 4,500 lei, the equivalent of roughly 900 euros, but the National Trade Union Block proposed that the gross wages in constructions be raised to 46 centaines lei and in agriculture to 35 centaines lei. The new form of the aforementioned ordinance may be high on the agenda of the new round of talks the government is going to have next week. The Finance Ministry has enough time to review the money involved.